GHOST TOWN Sub-Theme inspirations thread !!!

[Brick Miner]

ok, at the request of Brickster... here is an official "inspirations for the Ghost Town sub-theme" thread.

here was the original exchange that spark the topic...

ok, i'll try to get another Ghost Town monster done (but you know how long these things take me)... so if not, you'll see the Ghost Miner ;-) i have an idea for a western zombie (always love jonah hex comics). he was going to appear in Precarious Bridge, we'll see if i can get him done in two weeks.

also, thought id share jonah hex.. for those who aren't familar..

so where do enteries go ??? in this thread ???

- BrickMiner

Yes, definately.

PS. Post your comic as another message as inspiration for some of your MOCS. I am not familiar with this character. Would like to discus separate from this message.

JONAH HEX:

"He is a bounty hunter whose face bears a scar from a hot tomahawk, and whose attitude is fittingly surly and cynical, although tempered with a personal code of honor. Throughout the character's history, the western genre conventions are heavily subverted. Though he traveled extensively throughout the American West, he also ended up in South America and China."

whole wikipedia article...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonah_Hex

though, he is much more bad-megablocks than the article sounds ;-)

here are a couple of my favorite jonah hex covers...

enjoy !!!

- Brick Miner

[WesternOutlaw]

Great comic BM. I never got in to comics and have never seen this one before. I like the cover with El Diablo. Who is he? Is he a tough nemesis?

I'm starting to get an idea of your Ghost Town inspiration.

[Athos]

The Man in Black (aka Walter O'Dim, aka Marten Broadcloak, aka Randall Flagg) would make a good scary western figure. He is a wizard and major villan from Stephen King's Dark Tower series.

Here is my very inaccurate depiction:

Also this guy would make a good character. He is also from the Dark Tower series:

And don't forget the "Ghost Riders in the Sky!"

Steve

[Brick Miner]

Great comic BM. I never got in to comics and have never seen this one before. I like the cover with El Diablo. Who is he? Is he a tough nemesis?

i don't know if the two actually ever crossed paths, they are both kind of a anti-hero... like the punisher. and appear in separte story lines.

however, i could be wrong... there might have been a cross-over (<== comic jargan ;-) ).

I'm starting to get an idea of your Ghost Town inspiration.

my Ghost Town has far more fantasy than Jonah Hex ever encountered... but, even though the stories were more realistic, he was always presented in a mystical fashion... and in comics, that is sometimes more important. as iconography is so important to the medium.

Hex is always presented in a coming "out-of-the-dark-dust-bowls" kind of way... very often he is half in the shadows, and he carries a feeling of mysticism about him. i actually don't think the wikipedia article does him justice at all...

to me, he is kinda the western zombie.

--------------------------------------------------

but similar to how i like movie posters for inspiration (more than the movie itself), the cover of a comic get my creativity flowing (more than the actual stories inside).

i am so into iconography... its like story-telling through visual cues ;-)

- BrickMiner

[Mister Phes]

Brick Miner, how many ideas have you drawn from these comics? And what are they?

[Brick Miner]

Brick Miner, how many ideas have you drawn from these comics? And what are they?

well, contrary to Brickster's belief that i took the idea from him :-D ;-) *, the whole concept of mixing the horror and western genres steamed from these comics.

i try to be as original as possible in creating my characters and stories for my LEGO MOCs... so im not going to say that i borrowed any one from the comics above... at least, that is what i would admit :-D ;-)

but as i said before, iconography is really important to me... so the emotions that these comics capture, were very inspiring to the Ghost Town MOC line.

how about that for a round-about answer Phes :-P

- BrickMiner

*only joking Brickster, as im sure you remember the thread im referring to ;-)

[WesternOutlaw]

No problem BM. I know you got the concept of building a Ghost Town from me, but that's fine ;-) .

I'm still waiting for some more of your MOCs though. I enjoy looking at them. But you should also post your original photos. That way, people (like me) can see what they really look like.

[Brick Miner]

No problem BM. I know you got the concept of building a Ghost Town from me, but that's fine ;-) .

:-D X-D

I'm still waiting for some more of your MOCs though. I enjoy looking at them. But you should also post your original photos. That way, people (like me) can see what they really look like.

but, that is what they really look like ;-)

- BrickMiner

[WesternOutlaw]

I believe you, but seeing an actual image without the graphics shows the set much better (unless these MOCs are just smoke and mirrors).

[Brick Miner]

seeing an actual image without the graphics shows the set much better

all the graphics i apply are used to enhance the presentation of the MOC, without compromising the authenticity of the actually model. that is to say, any graphic that would "fool" the viewer into believing that the actually construction of the model is something other than what it is, would not be used.

likewise, any graphic that would make the MOC harder to comprehend and assess would not be used.

- BrickMiner

[Mister Phes]

well, contrary to Brickster's belief that i took the idea from him :-D ;-) *, the whole concept of mixing the horror and western genres steamed from these comics. i try to be as original as possible in creating my characters and stories for my LEGO MOCs... so im not going to say that i borrowed any one from the comics above... at least, that is what i would admit :-D ;-) but as i said before, iconography is really important to me... so the emotions that these comics capture, were very inspiring to the Ghost Town MOC line.

how about that for a round-about answer Phes :-P

Lets probe deeper shall we... Brick Miner, was this the comic the ONLY source ofinspirate for your Ghost Town Sub-Theme? Or have their been others?

By chance I was testing out The Crow DVD boxset I won off eBay the other day and I stumbe upon a storyboard for the "Skull Cowboy Scene" which featured a zombie cowboy type character. I haven't watched through the boxset, nor will have time for a while so I haven't viewed the finished scene. From the storyboard it looks quite effects intensive and since the latter two Crow movies seem to be on a budget I'm wondering how well it turned out, if it even made it into any of the films.

But apart from that, 80's Pop Art of hideous creatures and the like seen on Heavy Metal album covers and T-Shirts could be another source where I've seen such a being.

[Brick Miner]

Lets probe deeper shall we... Brick Miner, was this the comic the ONLY source ofinspirate for your Ghost Town Sub-Theme? Or have their been others?

well, as Brickster knows... his inital Ghost Town MOCs were very inspiring. he had a lot of good ideas, that i adapted into my own vision of the sub-theme.

Bricksters idea of a single villain was truely a great idea (i saw it as kind of an Adventurers-ish concept)... i loved his Ghost Rider... and that directely inspired my Ghost Miner.

By chance I was testing out The Crow DVD boxset I won off eBay the other day and I stumbe upon a storyboard for the "Skull Cowboy Scene" which featured a zombie cowboy type character. I haven't watched through the boxset, nor will have time for a while so I haven't viewed the finished scene. From the storyboard it looks quite effects intensive and since the latter two Crow movies seem to be on a budget I'm wondering how well it turned out, if it even made it into any of the films.

hmmm... i have never heard of this Skull Cowboy ??? id be interested to know more...

- Brick Miner

[Mister Phes]

Bricksters idea of a single villain was truely a great idea (i saw it as kind of an Adventurers-ish concept)... i loved his Ghost Rider... and that directely inspired my Ghost Miner.

This ugly brute here, eh?

hmmm... i have never heard of this Skull Cowboy ??? id be interested to know more...

After 30 seconds of Googling I've found some information...

The Skull Cowboy is seen only 3 times in the graphic novel, but it was decided to make him Eric's first source of information. At first he just tells Eric to "Follow the crow", but appears later to explain more including that Eric will bleed if he works for the living (see section below on filmed scenes). Director Alex Proyas cut the Skull Cowboy for a variety of reasons, but mostly because his scenes became somewhat redundant. Alex was also not entirely happy with the effects used to create the character. Michael Berryman, who played the character, is said to be disappointed that his performance did not reach the big screen.

From The CrowInfo.com <Changes and Goofs>

And if you want to see the cut scene then visit This page at TheCrow.com

[Brick Miner]

This ugly brute here, eh?

:-D actually no... Brickster's Ghost Rider is the main villain in his original (and new) ghost town/grave stone MOCs. definitely not the Marvel comics Ghost Rider... he is so silly.

actually i just got back from a movie... Grunge 2. the movie was terrible, but there was a trailer for Marvel's Ghost Rider movie... and guess what... it looked terrible too !!!

and Nick Cage as the rider... just plain unbelievable :-D

--------------------------------------------------

After 30 seconds of Googling I've found some information...

The Skull Cowboy is seen only 3 times in the graphic novel, but it was decided to make him Eric's first source of information. At first he just tells Eric to "Follow the crow", but appears later to explain more including that Eric will bleed if he works for the living (see section below on filmed scenes). Director Alex Proyas cut the Skull Cowboy for a variety of reasons, but mostly because his scenes became somewhat redundant. Alex was also not entirely happy with the effects used to create the character. Michael Berryman, who played the character, is said to be disappointed that his performance did not reach the big screen.

wow, comic characters have been a common theme in this thread :-D

hmmmm... since this cowboy is in direct continuity with the crow, i doubt i'd draw any inspiration from his stories... i don't really like the crow |-/ actually, not at all :-D

- BrickMiner

[Mister Phes]

There's more aspects to a character than stories. Obviously... Like apperance for example... And name is another one that springs to mind.

[Brick Miner]

:-D your right... and im the one thats been talking about iconography... shame on me 8-|

- BrickMiner

[Brick Miner]

I would like to clarify and acknowledge all inspirations that motivated me in creating my version of a LEGO ghost town.

First we need to recognize EB member TheBrickster, who to the best of my knowledge introduced Ghost Town MOCing to the medium of LEGO. Seeing his mystery challenge in 2005 is the single event that motivated me to started creating my own LEGO vision in the horror/western genre.

Now, my interest in Ghost Towns (and more generally the horror/western genre) was rooted in me long ago. The comic book title ,Weird Western Tales (circa 1971) featuring Jonah Hex is a favorite of mine, and if this comic had been absent from my teen and young adult years, it is possible that I never would have become interested in the genre at all. Respectively, iconic imagery and emotions that I experienced when reading Jonah Hex are themes that are reproduced in my version of the horror/western genre.

However, the characters and story of my LEGO ghost town stems from neither of these sources, an is, in all honestly, a very unlikely inspiration - the movie Star Wars. The three heroes of Shiversdale, the Mystic Wanderer, Cocky Cook, and the Young Wrangler, all have counterparts in the Obi-Wan, Luke Skywalker , Han Solo collective archetype. The Young Wrangler (Luke Skywalker) is the literary

[WesternOutlaw]

Brickminer: You've done one hell of a suberb job with Shiversdale. I truly hope that Lego hires you and you create Ghost Town as an official Lego theme. I would buy every set twice!

[Klaus-Dieter]

Brickminer: You've done one hell of a suberb job with Shiversdale. I truly hope that Lego hires you and you create Ghost Town as an official Lego theme. I would buy every set twice!

Amen!

It's very nice to see you coming back, Brick Miner! :-)

Farbsman posted pics of your excellent MOCs we already had seen but of three new MOCs, too on http://eurobricks.hosting.ipsyn.com/eurofo...opic=15788&st=0. They are all amazing *wub* *y* !

If you have got time would you then please be so nice and post a review of your new Ghost Town because on the pic you can't see the details like e. g. the interior of the two houses in which I'm very interested?! ;-)

Edited March 11, 2008 by Klaus-Dieter